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Call for Artists: Adkins Arboretum to Sponsor 2013 Art Competition

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (RIDGELY, MD—OCTOBER 11, 2012)

Adkins Arboretum in Ridgely, Md., will sponsor its fourteenth annual Art Competition, to exhibit in February and March 2013. The theme of the competition—Discovering the Native Landscapes of Maryland’s Eastern Shore—celebrates the Arboretum’s mission of conservation. The Leon Andrus Award, in honor of the Arboretum’s first benefactor, will be presented to the competition’s winner. A second-place award will also be given.

The competition is open to all original two- and three-dimensional fine arts, including outdoor sculpture and installations. The show will be juried by Alex Castro, lecturer in art and Architect, Exhibition and Book Designer in Residence at Washington College, Chestertown. Castro recently initiated a studio art course in environmental art.

The deadline for submissions is Jan. 7, 2013. Digital images of up to three pieces of art by each artist may be sent to art@adkinsarboretum.org. Submissions should include title, medium, dimensions (maximum of 6 feet in any direction, excluding outdoor sculpture), and artist’s name and address. Works should reflect or interpret broadly the show’s theme of wild nature and landscapes of the Mid-Atlantic coastal plain region.

The artists of work selected will be contacted by Jan. 18 to submit the original art ready to hang by Feb. 1. The exhibit will open Feb. 4 and will run through March 29, 2013 with a reception on Sat., Feb. 16 from 3 to 5 p.m. There is no fee for the competition, but artists are responsible for all shipping expenses. Selected artists may be considered for future exhibits at the Arboretum.

The competition is part of Adkins Arboretum’s ongoing exhibition series of work on natural themes by regional artists, supported in part by the Caroline County Council of Arts.

Adkins Arboretum is a 400-acre native garden and preserve at the headwaters of the Tuckahoe Creek in Caroline County. Open year round, the Arboretum offers educational programs for all ages about nature and gardening. Through its Campaign to Build a Green Legacy, the Arboretum will build a new LEED-certified Arboretum Center and entranceway to broaden educational offerings and research initiatives promoting best practices in conservation and land stewardship. For additional information about Arboretum programs, visit www.adkinsarboretum.org or call 410-634-2847, ext. 0.

Photo: “Native/Invasive,” a watercolor and archival ink jet print by Christine Neill, earned first prize in Adkins Arboretum’s 2012 Art Competition. Submissions for the 2013 Competition will be accepted through January 7.